MCM: Sam Rockwell – Frock Flicks

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I love Sam Rockwell and will watch just about anything he’s in, simply because he’s in it. So let’s look at his historical film and television roles!

Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989)

Based on a novel written by Hubert Selby Jr. and set in 1950s Brooklyn, starring Jennifer Jason Leigh. Sam Rockwell has a very small part in it.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999)

The next historical role Sam Rockwell played was as Francis Flute, the bellows-maker, who is forced to play Thisbe in the play-within-a-play of Pyramus and Thisbe. Costumes were designed by Gabriella Pescucci.

The Green Mile (1999)

Pretty sure if you were alive and conscious at the time this film came out, you will remember it. Sam Rockwell plays Wild Bill, the film’s villain.

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)

I’ll be posting about this film in the near future, so I’ll save all the deep thoughts for that. All you need to know is Sam Rockwell plays Chuck Barris, gameshow host and possible CIA asset.

Piccadilly Jim (2004)

Another film I’ll be covering in the next few weeks (in case you haven’t noticed, I’m on a bit of a Sam Rockwell kick). Based on a P.G. Wodehouse novel, it’s set in the 1930s. Rockwell plays playboy Jim Crocker, the film’s protagonist.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

I did try to watch this movie, as it’s one of my boyfriend’s favorite films, but yeesh, is it a slog. It’s packed with amazing actors, the cinematography is incredible, the costumes are good, but it lost my interest almost immediately. Rockwell plays Charley Ford, the brother of the eponymous Robert Ford.

Frost/Nixon (2008)

This film is very good, absolutely worth the watch, even if it is after our 1969 cut off. It’s set in 1974 and deals with the seminal one-on-one interview between British journalist David Frost and disgraced former US president, Richard Nixon, who has just stepped down in the wake of the Watergate Scandal. Sam Rockwell plays American journalist James Reston Jr.

Cowboys & Aliens (2011)

I know I’ve said a million times that I have zero interest in Westerns (something that all three of us have in common here), but this is one I could actually get behind. It co-stars Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford alongside Sam Rockwell, who all have to grapple with the fact that their 1872 New Mexico town is the center of an alien invasion.

Drunk History: “Las Vegas” (2015)

We love Drunk History here at Frock Flicks! In this episode, Sam Rockwell plays Bugsy Seigel, one of the mobsters behind the development of the Las Vegas strip in the 1940s.

Woman Walks Ahead (2017)

A romanticized biography of Swiss-American artist Caroline Weldon, who treks across the frontier to paint Sitting Bull. Sam Rockwell plays Colonel Silas Groves. Most of the press I’ve read about this film all seem to agree that Rockwell’s performance was a standout in an otherwise middling attempt to address a complicated piece of American history.

The Best of Enemies (2019)

Set ever-so-slightly after our 1969 cutoff date, this film takes place in 1971 Durham, North Carolina and focuses on C.P. (played by Rockwell), the president of his local KKK chapter, and Ann (played by Taraji P. Henson), an activist and mother whose children are displaced by their school burning down in the segregated town. The film is based on the unlikely real life friendship between Ann and C.P. who each change the others’ life for the better.

Fosse/Verdon (2019)

Yet another one of my upcomming posts is going to be on this miniseries, so I won’t go into too much detail. Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams play Gwen Verdon and Bob Fosse, the power couple of Broadway and Hollywood musicals in the 1960s and 1970s.

Jojo Rabbit (2019)

One of my favorite films of the last decade. Sam Rockwell plays the ridiculously camp Nazi Captain Klenzendorf who runs a Jungvolk camp attended by Jojo, the film’s protagonist.

See How They Run (2022)

See How They Run (2022) — A comedy/mystery film set in 1953 London, starring Sam Rockwell as Inspector George Stoppard and Saoirse Ronan as Constable Stalker, who team up to solve the murder of an American film director backstage at a performance of Agatha Christie’s The Moustrap. It’s a fun romp with some great costumes by Odile Dicks-Mireaux.

Do you have a favorite Sam Rockwell film? Tell us in the comments!

More Frock Flicks

Tags: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999) adapted from books Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) Drunk History (2013-19) Fosse/Verdon (2019) Jojo Rabbit (2019) murder mystery Piccadilly Jim (2004) playing fast & loose with history Sam Rockwell See How They Run (2022) Shakespeare Woman Walks Ahead (2017)

4 thoughts on “MCM: Sam Rockwell”

Kat says:

March 17, 2025 at 6:52 am

I watched A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the height of my Shakespeare-fixation and as a preteen was appalled at what I saw as the butchering of one of my favorite plays, despite the very pretty setting and cast (although the casting of the lovers always confused me a bit since I would assume that they’re all supposed to be the same age or close in age but Dominic West and Callista Flockhart are close to a decade older than Anna Friel and Christian Bale). That being said, I may need to give it a rewatch to reassess it sometime soon.

Jojo Rabbit and See How They Run are comfort rewatches of mine and I’m always impressed at Sam’s grasp of accents.

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TJ Manfuso says:

March 17, 2025 at 6:53 am

This is actually such a coincidence because he was just in the new episode of the White Lotus that came out last night

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Heather says:

March 17, 2025 at 7:46 am

See How They Run was surprisingly entertaining. Sam was excellent as usual. He’s the worst human being in The Green Mile!! But another standout performance for Sam.
I need to see the rest of his FF, but may pass on the Westerns except for the one with Daniel Craig (rowr).

If Piccadilly Jim is set in the 1930s, his character needs to be wearing a hat!

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ED says:

March 17, 2025 at 10:22 am

Mr Rockwell has been good old-fashioned entertainment ever since that delightful moment when he did his little Villain Dance in CHARLIE’S ANGELS and doesn’t seem about to stop yet.

Still a bit funny to see him channel Mr David Thewlis just a bit in SEE HOW THEY RUN (But honesty compels me to confess I watched that film for the lovely Saorise Ronan IN UNIFORM and for few other reasons).

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